Critical factors in site planning and design of green buildings: A case of China

Site planning and design (SPD) are critical steps in forming a sustainable site, but few studies have examined the important considerations of SPD in green buildings. Consequently, this study aims of identifying the critical factors of SPD in green buildings within the context of China. A questionnaire survey was conducted to collect practitioners’ opinions about the critical factors of SPD in green buildings. Respondents from mainland China and Hong Kong provided generally similar rankings of the top five most important items in the SPD of green buildings as follows: water pollution reduction, human health issues protection, dust and air emission mitigation, sufficient green space consideration, and construction noise mitigation. Five underlying critical factors of SPD in green buildings were identified via factor analysis: environmental protection consideration, effective use of space, use of natural and existing resources, green parking and thermal environment, and use of land resources. Practical guidelines can be devised for effective and efficient implementation of SPD based on the critical factors identified. Thus, the findings of this study should not only help academics and practitioners to better understand the critical factors of SPD in green buildings, but also provide a basis for effective SPD in future green building development.